


The Most Inconvenient Time

by jopling



Category: Justice League (2017)
Genre: M/M, came out of the theater with the inescapable need to write these two, kinda drabble-y
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-27
Updated: 2017-11-27
Packaged: 2019-02-07 15:04:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,964
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12843708
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jopling/pseuds/jopling
Summary: Barry Allen gets a new crush during the worst possible time to get a new crush.





	The Most Inconvenient Time

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER:
> 
> My memory's not great so there might be some mistakes in settings/scenes. And I wrote this in a rush because I needed it out of my system! Aaaand all I know about the DCU and these characters are from the movies. So apologies in advance if there are some inconsistencies/out-of-character-ness. Heck, it’s hard to even to try to do some research because there are so many versions of them, haha! For the purposes of this story, I’ve pegged them both to be college graduates.

 

 

-

 

Oh god, why did he have to be cute.

It’s the first thing that crosses Barry Allen’s mind as Victor approaches. And it only really reaffirms his questionable taste because he’s been in the presence of Bruce Wayne and a literal  _goddess,_ but it’s the Terminator that’s got his heart racing a bit faster, standing a bit straighter, and posturing to make himself look a bit cooler than he actually is.

When Victor speaks and Barry hears his deep voice for the first time, he can literally feel the hairs at the back of his neck stand. A shiver runs down his spine.

He’s so fucked.

Of all the times to form a crush? Now? Really?

And what does he imagine getting out of this? Lets say they somehow survive all of this. What, they get to talking, maybe become friends, maybe (hopefully) become more? And if that happens – what exactly are the mechanics to how they’re going to make out? Does Victor still even have his penis or is there just some sort of flap down there? Or if he does have it, is it metal too? Well, maybe if they use a thicker condom it wouldn’t feel so –

Oh  _god_.

Barry successfully controls the impulse to bury his face in his hands. He’s literally been in the guy’s presence for three minutes, they haven’t even said a single word to each other, and already he’s fantasizing about his (possibly) metal dick. He really should be paying attention to Gordon and what they’re talking about and the main end-of-the-world problem at hand and Bruce is probably saying something important because he’s using that gruff, barely audible voice of his –

When he looks up, he and Gordon are staring at each other and of course everyone else has went off and disappeared.

–

 

“Hey, do you want some pizza – “

“No, thanks.”

“Okay.”

–

 

He’s starving and there is literally no food on Bruce’s huge ship. You’d think the guy would at least have a mini-fridge hidden somewhere. Wasn’t that something all rich people had? And he highly doubts they’d be able to swing by the nearest restaurant for some stroganoff when they get to Russia.

Fortunately, he’s learned to come prepared for situations like these. He had installed a nifty little side pocket in his suit where he stored as many snacks as he could cram into it. Carefully, he pulls out a protein bar with enough calories to cover the daily caloric intake of three people. He rips it open and takes a bite as he walks down the hallway, admiring Bruce’s ship. He spots Diana following after Bruce in his cabin – “Eeww, what’s going on there” – and stops when he sees Victor by the computers, hunched on the floor with his hands held out in front of him.

“Victor…?”

Victor turns to glance at him, and from there Barry can see the shifting projections between his hands. First it’s of a mountainous region; he sees the slopes and hills, then the screen blinks and changes into a deserted looking town with grid lines scanning over the area. Most probably where they’re heading to. Victor doesn’t say anything as he turns back to what he’s doing, and, well, he didn’t say to go away either, so Barry takes it as a sign that it’s okay for him to come closer.

Slowly, he walks over, close enough for him to lean against the table beside Victor.

“Got the hang of it yet?” he asks, motioning toward Victor’s hands with his half-eaten energy bar.

As he says it, the projection disappears and he sees the brief flash of panic in Victor’s eyes as one hand shifts to form the energy beam it turned into against not-so-super-Superman. Fortunately, it isn’t glowing, so he hopes that means it isn’t armed. Victor closes his eyes and takes a deep breath as the weapon shifts back to his regular human shaped hand, and a hologram of the plane they’re in appears just above his palm.

“Trying to,” Victor grits out.

Barry nods, wondering if Victor was hoping he’d leave. He clasps his hands together and looks around the ship, thinking of what else to say.

“Well… I’m sure you’ll figure it out. You’re like, really, really smart.”

Smooth.

Victor raises an eyebrow.

Barry flushes. “Ah, I read your file,” he says, like it’s some sort of explanation. Real smooth.

Wait, did that make him sound stalkery?

He clears his throat. “Well, I read everyone’s? So, it’s not weird or anything, right?”

Victor nods and still doesn’t say anything before turning back to the hologram. More silence passes and of course Barry is physically incapable of dealing with awkward silences so he can’t help but fill it with whatever words come spilling out of his mouth.

“So what’s it like to be, you know, really, really smart?”

He wishes he could just make himself walk out of there to save himself from anymore embarrassment but he’s also unable to make himself move when they’re so close to each other. The hologram on Victor’s hand shifts to reveal the plane’s underside as he moves it around with his other hand.

“I’d say you know what it feels like too,” Victor says. “Making that suit on your own and everything.”

Barry frowns and is about to ask how he knows that when Victor glances up at him, a shy smirk (how is that expression even physically possible???) on his face. “Read your file too.”

That really shouldn’t sound hotter than it does. And Victor really shouldn’t look as hot as he looks.

Barry’s already got a witty reply planned out, but he stops just as he’s about to say it.

Oh my god?? Is he reading this right?

Are they flirting? This is flirting, right??

Please let this be flirting??

He tries to casually lean against the desk. “Yeah, but, you know, you had football too, a scholarship and everything.”

He doesn’t know where he’s getting it from, but Barry suddenly feels a bit bold enough to sidle a bit closer, until he’s close enough for his knee to graze against Victor’s shoulder from where he’s standing over him. “That’s like… cool guy smart.”

Victor actually lets out a laugh. Barry wants to punch a fist in the air. “What’s cool guy smart?”

“You know,” Barry waves a hand in the air. “The popular, cool guy smart.”

Victor just gives him a flat look, so Barry continues, “The guy every girl wants to be, the guy every guy wants to sleep with.”

It dawns right as he says it that that’s not how that statement goes. And to make matters worse, the silence is broken by the choked sound of a laugh unsuccessfully suppresed, and Barry whips around to find Arthur at the far end of the room, polishing his glorified pitch fork with a rag, steadfastly biting his lip and not looking their way.

“Don’t mind me,” he says, waving his free hand. The struggle in controlling another laugh is extremely evident on his face. “Just minding my own business.”

Barry turns back to Victor, hoping the look on his face doesn’t betray how horrified he feels. “Sorry, I meant  – “

Victor shakes his head, a funny turn to his lips. “No worries, got what you meant,” he says.

He turns back to his hands as the hologram of the plane disappears and he’s quiet as he stares at his steel palm and metal fingers. He closes and opens the metal digits one by one then all at the same time. A few seconds pass before he turns back to face Barry. There’s a small, sad turn to his smile.

“It was good while it lasted.”

–

 

After everything’s settled, the big baddie’s been taken care of, and the world is safe, the team is back on a new plane Bruce called for – because apparently that’s a thing you can do when you’re Bruce Wayne. Superman’s flown off because he could get home back faster on his own. Barry realizes he probably could too, but after everything he figures he’s earned a few hours of sleep to rest. And he’s just feeling lazy.

After buckling the seatbelt and reclining his seat back, he’s settling himself to take his well-earned nap, when Diana takes the seat beside him.

“So, Barry, do you have anything to look forward to when you go back to your home?”

“I plan on eating,” he says, closing his eyes. He had run out of energy bars before they even got to Russia. “I’m starving.”

Diana laughs, that melodic one of hers that’s got everyone – Bruce included, yeah, Barry’s noticed – tripping themselves over her. “That’s nice. Anything else?’

Eyes still closed, Barry scrunches his nose. “Visit my dad, I guess? Moving out of the shithole I’m in, maybe getting a job – “

“And what about for you and Victor?”

He sputters and jerks upright on his seat – but gets pulled back because duh, seatbelt. He scans the area to find they’re the only ones here.

“Um, what about Victor?”

Diana tilts her head to fix him with a wry look. It suddenly feels like he’s talking to a disappointed aunt.

“It’s not… um, you wouldn’t get it,” he drifts off. He swallows.

“Because you both live under extraordinary circumstances?” Diana asks, tilting her head. “By common human standards?”

Barry shakes his head. “No, it’s not – okay, that is a factor, but not the  _immediate_ point of concern – “

Diana quirks her eyebrows with that look on her face when she’s faced with a concept of modern humanity she doesn’t understand. Last time he saw that look was when he showed her Grindr (“How are you supposed to determine if someone’s a compatible partner based on a picture of their genitals?”).

“Then what is?”

Barry sighs. And while it isn’t the same heavy emotion in his chest that he felt during the first time he did this in high school, he’s still bitterly surprised to see that there’s still some of it there.

“Well, for one thing, it’s because I’m a guy,” he says in one go. “And he is too.”

He thinks that’s enough to explain his hesitation over the entire situation but Diana still has the same confused look on her face. He sighs and pushes on. “I know what I am, who I like, but… I don’t know if he does? Like, if even he’d be into it? In the first place?” he says, hoping she gets what he means. “And, he’s already having a hard time adjusting to society  _as is_ with the whole Terminator “Come with me if you want to live” thing, and here I am, hoping for something that would make it  _even harder –_ “

“First, Barry,” Diana says, resting a hand over his shoulder. “It perplexes me you would think I would not understand the concept of a relationship between people of the same gender. Themyscira is an island composed only of women – ”

Barry rolls his eyes. “Yeah, but your entire island is practically a part of Greek myth – I wouldn’t say you have the same societal standards.”

“Regardless, why would something as having the same gender hold someone from the potential of the comfort and love of a beautiful relationship?”

That makes him pause, for just a bit.

He scowls at her. “You and your fancy words and accent.”

Barry sighs and drops his head back against the seat. “Hey, what about I use your lasso of truth to find out if he’s into guys first to save me the embarrassment if he isn’t?”

Diana gives him a wry smile and Barry deflates. “Yeah, it’d feel like cheating,” he sighs.

“Just ask him, Barry,” she says.

He looks up at her, and damnit, she’s using that smile of hers that’s giving him more confidence than he actually has.

“Okay,  _okay_ , I will.”

He drops back on his seat and closes his eyes to take his nap but there’s really no point because now he’s coming up with different scenarios on how to bring up the topic with Victor. He’s in the middle of his third hypothetical situation when he hears Diana chuckle to herself. He peeks one eye open to see a smile on her face, and if he wasn’t imagining it, a few tears at the corner of her eyes.

“What is it?”

She turns to him. “Why don’t you take him dancing?”

“Yeah, that’s a no.”

–

 

A few weeks later, Barry doesn’t know how he ends up getting there, but he’s standing in the kitchen of Victor’s home and Dr. Stone is sitting by the counter on his laptop, writing his recommendation letter for his job application.

“How do you prefer I address you here?” Dr. Stone asks over his shoulder. “Barry? Mr. Allen?”

 _How about future son-in-law_ , Barry thinks to himself. He lets out a little chortle – and ends up choking on it as Victor walks into the room in a plain t-shirt and sweatpants, munching on a bowl of cornflakes and looking very much comfortable and at home that Barry suddenly feels like he’s intruding on sacred ground.

“Um, Barry’s fine,” he says, trying very hard not to stare.

“Oh,” Victor says, setting his bowl down on the counter to open the refrigerator. He pulls out the milk and pours some more into his bowl. “What are you doing here?”

“Ah, um,” Barry tilts his head toward Victor’s dad busy typing away on his laptop. “Getting a recommendation from your dad. Uh, for a job I’m applying for. Figured it’s the least he could do, for, you know, saving his life.”

Victor lets out a small laugh. “Yeah, I think that’s the least he could do.”

“Alright,” Dr. Stone says, clapping his hands together. “That’s done. Let me just get it from the printer.”

Barry watches as Dr. Stone hops off his stool and exits the kitchen to go to his office upstairs. He turns back to see Victor mixing the cereal in his bowl as a calm silence falls in the kitchen, save for the soft clinking of Victor’s spoon against his bowl. Taking it as his chance, Barry takes in a deep breath.

“Would you – “

“I never got to – “

Barry lets out a nervous laugh as Victor looks back down on his bowl, a small smile on his face.

“You first,” Barry says.

Victor mixes a few more times before he looks up from his bowl.

“I never got to thank you that time,” he starts. He nods his head to motion upstairs. “For saving him.”

Barry can literally feel himself start to blush.

“Oh, it’s no problem, I mean, we all did, right – “

“Yeah, but,” Victor says, then looks back at his bowl. Surely that cereal must be super soggy by now. “It all went a bit easier – for me, at least. Knowing you got him out of there first.”

“Oh,” Barry says. For the first time in a while, he’s not sure what he wants to say. Well, he often gets like this around Victor, he’s come to realize. He swallows. “Yeah, no problem. I… uh, I’m glad he’s safe too.”

At that moment, Dr. Stone comes back to the kitchen, dispelling the strange silence in the kitchen.

“Here you go,” he says, bending over the counter to sign the letter before folding it into an envelope. He hands it to Barry with a smile on his face. “Hope you get the job.”

Barry takes it, a wide smile on his face. “With your recommendation, I’m pretty sure I will.” He carefully tucks the letter into his messenger bag and looks up when he’s done. “So, um, thanks, I’ll head out now – “

“I’ll walk you out,” Victor says, setting his bowl down, and the hairs at the back of Barry’s neck raise in nervous anticipation.

“Oh, um, thanks,” he manages to get out, as he turns for the door and Victor follows after him.

They don’t really say anything during the walk to the door, his eyes scanning the areas of the apartment he can see and catching onto every childhood photograph of Victor hanging on the walls or set on the tables. He’s almost a bit disappointed when they get to the door already. When he reaches for the doorknob, Victor leans in, close enough for Barry to feel the warmth of his body against his side, his arm brushing his, and he takes the doorknob first.

“Good luck with the job,” Victor says, pulling the door open for him.

Swallowing, Barry steps out onto the exit.

He turns around to say thanks, and in a hurry before his confidence flees, he asks, “Would you like to go out… for… brunch?”

Victor’s eyebrows rise, which Barry takes as his cue to start rambling.

“Because, you know, it’s a thing people to do? I don’t really get it myself? But apparently it’s the only societally acceptable occasion to start drinking at 11? And I hear mimosas are pretty good – I’ve never tried one myself, but why not, you know? Like – “

“Sure.”

Barry stills.

“Really?”

Victor leans against the doorframe and crosses his arms over his chest, looking so cool and nonchalant and Barry wants to climb him like a tree.

“Yeah,” he says. Victor smiles and it’s doing things to Barry's heart. “Mimosas at eleven sounds like a plan.”

 

–

 

_A few months later…_

Barry settles his hands at both sides of Victor’s head as he pulls his lips away to look down at him. He tosses his head back to move his thick, dark hair from his eyes.

“Can I just say, I am  _so happy_  you still have a penis – “

Victor drops his head back on the pillow and throws his hand over his face.

“Barry,  _shut up_.”

 

 

 


End file.
